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Character Name: Prince FIRE LORD Zuko
Series: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Age: Sixteenish. Definitely closer to seventeen if not actually seventeen at this point.
From When?: After the series finale.
Inmate/Warden: Warden. Although in the past Zuko's done some pretty bad stuff, he's done the whole redemption thing already, and by the end of the series, is an altruistic hero who wants to redeem his country and restore peace and happiness to his world after a 100 year war. He's made a deal with the Admiral for information about his missing (and previously presumed dead) mother.
Item: The crown prince headpiece.
Abilities/Powers: Zuko is a talented Firebender, and has been training with masters since he was very young. Although it took him longer to master the art then his sister, by the time the series starts, he's extremely talented, and grows even more so as the series progresses. Firebending at its simplest is the ability to create and control fire, although there are different styles and techniques, all of which are listed here. Zuko is capable of all the basic abilities, and most of the advanced techniques, most notably fire breathing, jet propulsion (while his abilities were enhanced by Sozin's Comet, it's unknown/assumed he's not capable of it normally) and fire augmentation. He's one of the only people in the series who can redirect lightning when hit with it, although he can't generate it himself. His Firebending abilities are dampened during times of solar eclipse or extreme cold (although cold can be overcome with focus), and if he loses his "inner fire" (drive), his powers will become weaker.
Zuko is also a skilled hand to hand combatant and swordsman. He's strong enough to kick through metal chains, capable of holding his own against basically any foe - generally only resorting to Firebending when faced with another powerful bender - can jump great distances, an excellent climber, and is fast enough to run on walls. He's mastered the use of his twin Dao blades, and while he isn't as talented as Azula at strategy and academics, he's very intelligent and skilled at planning, and is also skilled at stealth and infiltration. He knows how to track people - having chased down the Avatar and his friends successfully on a number of occasions - and in general, knows how to take care of himself. That said, he's still as vulnerable as any other human teenager, and can be hurt and killed just as easily as someone without awesome fire powers.
On the Barge, he won't resort to Firebending unless it's necessary and his opponent can defend themselves. Otherwise, he'll rely on other methods, as again, he's more than capable of defending himself without Firebending.
He also knows how to play the Tsungi Horn.
Personality: Perhaps more than anything else, Zuko always, always tries. No matter what it is, if he wants it, or wants it for someone else, he's going to give everything he has to get it, and get it the right way. He's not afraid to make mistakes or fail, so long as he knows he's trying to do the right thing, and accepts that this is just something he'll have to do in life: fail and try not to make the same mistake twice. He's always determined and persistent, and is generally incredibly reluctant to accept anything less than perfection. He has a lot of drive and ambition, and this can often be very single minded, focusing on one task or greater goal at the expense of basically anything else. This can be seen at first with his relentless hunting of the Avatar, and even in how focused he is on training Aang in firebending, and then presumably in restoring peace to the world as the new Fire Lord. Without something to work for or work on, he can feel lost and confused with himself and his place in the world, as exhibited during his time as an exile with his uncle in the Earth Kingdom, and later when he realized he made a mistake in betraying Iroh to side with Azula. As such, it's not surprising that Zuko is a very intense person, and generally takes things very seriously, often getting frustrated when people don't realize the gravity of a situation. He can be a little bossy, generally with with people he feels comfortable with, in charge of, or responsible for, while he's become more passive and cooperative with other people, and generally is less grouchy and angry about everything.
It's important to point out that Zuko is a very different person than he was at the beginning of the series. For most of his life, he's wanted one thing: the love and acceptance of his father, Fire Lord Ozai. In the past, he's been willing to do just about anything to achieve that, including betraying his uncle, Iroh, and relentlessly pursuing information about the Avatar (which was considered to basically be a fool's mission until Katara and Sokka found Aang in the iceberg), and eventually, the Avatar himself. He was so obsessed with redeeming himself in the eyes of his father, he was completely blinded to anything else, and as such, he functioned as the primary antagonist for the first of the three seasons of Avatar.
That said, he's always had moments of being genuinely a good person, and most of his actual villainy was inspired by desperately wanting his father's approval. He finally realized he could never be the son his father wanted after he actually had his apparently love and respect. After betraying his uncle, he expected to feel happy and fulfilled, but in fact felt horrible, and his anger with his situation shifted to himself. He's incredibly surprised when Iroh forgives him immediately, and in fact says there's nothing to forgive, because he hated himself so much for doing the wrong thing and betraying the one person who's always been there for him.
For a long time, Zuko thought it was his destiny to find the Avatar and bring him to the Fire Nation, but has grown to believe that people make their own destinies, and that to really figure out what your purpose in life is, you need to work hard and be prepared to make mistakes, and struggle. Because this is something he's personally discovered, and learned the hard way, since most of his life has been one futile seeming struggle after another, he does try to point this out to other people when they themselves are having a difficult time figuring out what their place in the universe is. Although he isn't as focused on the metaphysical as say, his uncle is, Zuko does suggest talking about things like "their place in the universe" when stuck with Aang in a potentially inescapable situation, and it's clearly an important thing for him to think about and consider.
He's very, very aware of all the mistakes he's made in the past, and won't try and deny it to anyone. While he isn't necessarily ashamed of his past - in that again, he's aware of and willing to admit to his mistakes, and there are a lot of them - he certainly isn't proud of what he's done, and is always ready and willing to make an effort to prove he isn't the same guy. Instead of being the proud, stubborn, "I'm better than everyone else" prince from the first season, Zuko has learned how to be humble and treat others with respect, and is willing to go above and beyond to prove to his new friends and teammates that he's not the same person. Their acceptance and approval is important to him, mostly because part of him doesn't really feel like he deserves it in some ways, but also because apart from Iroh, they're the first positive relationships he's had besides his mother. He really doesn't feel like he deserves them as friends, in some ways, and is often quick to point out to people that he isn't the lone good Fire Nation person. That's his uncle, and Zuko doesn't really feel he deserves to be classified as a glimmer of hope for the Fire Nation.
He's very preoccupied by honor and doing the right thing for the right reasons, especially because he was doing the wrong thing for maybe the right reasons for so long. Almost everything he's done has been in an attempt to restore or regain his honor, which he believed he'd lost first when his father banished him, and then again when he'd betrayed his uncle. However, he's come to learn that honor is something that must be earned, and apparently, he's been a person of unquestionable honor this whole time, which is actually very valid. Despite being an antagonist and then an anti-hero, Zuko has always tried to do what he feels is right, especially when it comes to the well being of others. Speaking up for the benefit of Fire Nation soldiers was, after all, why he ended up being burned, banished and sent on a "fool's errand" in the first place. He won't do something that will hurt innocent people if he can help it, and even while being a villain, he won't sacrifice the lives of his troops for the benefit of the Fire Nation's ultimate goal, and tries to save his enemy Admiral Zhao from being drowned by a vengeful ocean spirit. Although he used to hide behind a lot of armor to keep people at arm's length, he could show compassion to people close to him, and that's only become more and more apparent as he's matured and changed.
Although he is very clever, he does have a tendency to rush into situations without thinking things through clearly, something that his uncle often tries to get him to stop doing. By the end of the series, it's clear that it's something he's actively working on, even going as far as to point out to Sokka when the other teenager is about to rush into something that usually Zuko's the one doing that, while Sokka plans things through more carefully. He's a skilled strategist and problem solver, often figuring out ways to get past traps and who knows what else even when other members of his current group are ready to just throw in the towel.
While he can come off as being grumpy or uninterested in interacting positively with other people initially, Zuko actually can be just as friendly and social as any other teenager when put in the right situation, although really, he's not great at interacting with his peers. He's definitely improved, and his intentions are always good, but he can often come off as being a little awkward. In general, he's not great at interacting socially with others, but it's something he's actively working on. After teaming up with and being accepted by "Team Avatar", he makes jokes, tries to connect with the other team members and in general, makes an effort to really have friends. His sense of humor is a little dry and teasing (or inspired by stuff he sort of remembers from Iroh) but it's there, and while he might grumble and get frustrated by whatever awesome fun plans you have, he's actually easily talked into things, even if he thinks it's silly or a waste of time. He's also capable of praising other people when they deserve it and admitting he cares about people, which is a lot different from early in the series when he tries distancing himself from Iroh and just about everyone else in an attempt to appear tough and invulnerable. In general, he's more laid back and honestly much happier than he was earlier in the series, and is definitely a more honestly empathetic person.
Because of everything he's been through - and the fact that his culture does generally expect more from their teenagers and children than ours does - Zuko is very mature for his age, and is actually in charge of a country back home. As such, he can come off as being very serious when on the job. He was a strict Firebending teacher for Aang - leaving him homework while Zuko and Sokka went off to rescue Sokka's father, and presumably when he went to help Katara avenge her mother as well - and does take his responsibilities and duties very seriously. As such, when in work mode, he can come off as being more difficult to work with or for then when he's just relaxing with friends. And while he is a very mature teenager, he still has moments of being... a teenager. He can get petulant and stubborn, especially with his friends, and when people are trying to just laze on by without doing the work they need to actually get the job done. He can scootch around and get indignant when people aren't taking him seriously, and generally is capable of acting his age, even if it doesn't happen often.
Despite the fact that he is softening up and working on interacting more positively with other people, he still does have a temper, and can get frustrated when things aren't exactly going the way he'd hoped they would. His Firebending used to be drawn from his hate and anger, but it's something he's actively trying to move away from, and for the most part, has. He doesn't want to rely on being angry anymore, and is actively trying to not follow in the legacy of his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. Not repeating the mistakes of the past is probably one of his biggest motivations in the future, and in general, he is (and has been) very heavily influenced by the people in his life, especially his family. Although he used to be conflicted between listening to his sister and father, and then his uncle, now Azula and Ozai have become figures of what not to be, while Iroh continues to be an important voice and influence in his life, and Zuko occasionally spouts off Iroh-esque wisdom to people like Sokka, which doesn't always make a lot of sense. Most importantly, he's grown to realize figures like Ozai and Azula are an example of what not to do, and so while he might still be actively learning from their example, it's absolutely not as a positive influence he wants to emulate, either as Fire Lord or as a human being.
He's a good person to have on your side in a fight, both because he's an impressive combatant and someone who won't stab you in the back if you're on his side. He's good at adapting to new situations - especially if there's a specific goal in mind - and always tries to get in and get out with whatever is needed quickly, with as little casualties as possible. Although Avatar is a kid's show, and therefore Zuko hasn't ever been on screen really 100% stabbed-them-in-the-heart responsible for another person's death, he can be ruthless and does not share Aang's opinions about forgiving people who have really, really wronged you in the past being easy, which is sort of ironic considering his past history, and might have something to do with the fact that he hasn't really forgiven himself for what he's done. So, while he does care about human life, and doesn't actively encourage murder, he doesn't have a strict no kill policy either, and isn't afraid to do what it takes to defend the people he cares about and get the job done the right way. He even is in pretty direct opposition to Aang looking for an alternative way to defeat Ozai, because killing him would just end the problem once and for all, whereas the other options available at the time weren't exactly permanent.
He's likely to view being a warden as a huge responsibility and privilege, not right. He's been asked to be here by the Admiral for a reason, and he's here to do a job. As someone who's personally been through a fight for redemption, and struggled to make things right with the people he cares about and perfect strangers alike, he's likely to be extremely sympathetic to most inmates, but understand that redemption isn't just something that can be handed to them either. It's a long, difficult process, and because he honestly believes if you put in the work and effort to do the right thing, you can change your fate, he'll be a supportive and active warden.
Path to Redemption: lol dude he did this already.
History: This covers it pretty well.
Zuko was the oldest of two children born to Prince Ozai and his wife, Ursa. Zuko's younger sister Azula was a prodigy, both in Firebending and the general attitude expected by their father, while Zuko struggled to keep up with her. During their childhood, Azula would often manipulate and pick on her brother, a behavior which often went pretty unchecked in the household. He had a much more positive relationship with his mother, and with his uncle, Iroh, the former of which would become a matter of great resentment between him and Azula, who wanted the approval of her mother as well.
When Zuko was about ten, his cousin Lu Ten was killed in battle while his father - Zuko's uncle, Iroh - sieged the city of Ba Sing Se. Devastated by the death of his only son, Iroh abandoned the siege and returned home. While eavesdropping on his father and grandfather with Azula, Zuko overheard his father petitioning Fire Lord Azulon to make him heir instead of his older brother. Azulon was furious, and promised Ozai that while Iroh had suffered enough, his suffering had only begun. Azulon planned on forcing Ozai to kill Zuko, to show Ozai what his brother had been through, but Ursa intervened. It's never been revealed exactly what she did, but Azulon died that night and Ozai was declared firelord. Ursa - after saying a cryptic not quite goodbye to Zuko - was no where to be found and was assumed dead by her family.
When Zuko was thirteen, he convinced his uncle to let him attend a war meeting, on the condition that he wouldn't speak during the meeting. But when a general proposed a plan to sacrifice new troops for a diversion, Zuko spoke out in their defense, saying it was a betrayal to their loyalty to the Fire Nation. This was received as a grave insult, and Ozai demanded the teenager participate in an Agni Kai - a traditional duel. Expecting one of the generals to be his opponent, Zuko was shocked to see his father as his opponent instead and refused to fight, begging for his forgiveness. Ozai interpreted this as another sign of weakness and disrespect, and burned the left side of Zuko's face, stripped him of his birthright and exiled him from the Fire Nation, telling him he could only return if he found the Avatar, which at the time, was basically a fool's mission, as the Avatar had been missing for over a hundred years. He was accompanied by his uncle, Iroh along with a small ship and crew. He spent the next two and a half years of his life looking for the Avatar, traveling all over the world in search of the one thing that he thought could restore his honor and bring him home again.
The Avatar - this cycle, an Air Nomad named Aang - was discovered by two Water Tribe kids, Katara and Sokka. Zuko was quickly on their tail, and would spend the next several weeks chasing them around the various villages and islands on their way to the North Pole, where Aang and Katara hoped to learn Waterbending from a master. Also looking for the Avatar was the then Commander Zhao, a member of the Fire Nation military, and Zuko's main rival in capturing the Avatar. Zuko defeated him in an Agni Kai, and continued his search for the Avatar. When Aang was captured by Zhao, Zuko infiltrated the camp to free him in his Blue Spirit disguise, and after being knocked unconscious during their escape, Aang realized who his rescuer is. Still, he took Zuko to safety, and even attempts bonding with the banished prince, who promptly lashed out and Aang fled back to Katara and Sokka.
Zhao would later try to assassinate Zuko, while trying to organize and initiate an attack against the Northern Water Tribe. After stowing away on Zhao's ship, he was able to once again get close to Aang, and although he was initially defeated by Katara, was able to break free of the ice prison she put him in and kidnap Aang. Although Katara and others would eventually beat Zuko again, Aang insisted they take him along with them instead of leaving him unconscious in the snow, saving his life for a second time. While the others were distracted, he escaped and encountered Zhao again, once again defeated him, and tried to save him from being drowned by the angry ocean spirit, La.
He and Iroh escaped the North Pole on driftwood, and on the three year anniversary of Zuko's banishment, Azula showed up with news that Ozai wanted his son and brother home again. This was all a trick to try and get the two to go along willingly with the princess, when in actuality, they were to be prisoners. Iroh and Zuko were able to escape, and began their lives as fugitives from the Fire Nation. As neither was exactly skilled at surviving on their own, things didn't go well and Zuko's pride and still borderline obsessive desire to capture the Avatar became an issue between the two, and Zuko eventually decided to part ways with his uncle.
While alone, he encountered and helped a Earth Nation family, but once he revealed his true identity, they rebuffed him, and he once again was alone. He picked up the trail of Azula's tank, as the princess tracked Aang and his friends, and Zuko followed to a deserted town, and quickly a fight broke out between the Fire Nation prince and princess and the Avatar. Azula dominated the fight, but the odds were evened out when the others - including Iroh - showed up, until Azula feigned surrender and then seriously injured Iroh. Zuko forced the other kids away and tended to his injuries himself. After he healed, they resumed Zuko's Firebending training, and began introducing him to creating and redirecting lightning. While Zuko never was able to create his own lightning in the show, he becomes one of the only characters who can redirect it, a skill which would save his life on more than once occasion.
They finally settled down in Ba Sing Se, and Iroh ended up opening a tea shop. Zuko was frustrated by how easily his uncle was adapting to and adopting their new lifestyle, while Iroh was frustrated that his nephew couldn't see that hunting the Avatar down was self destructive and futile. This finally came to a head when Zuko found Aang's missing (and kidnapped) sky bison, Appa, intending to use him as bait for Aang. Iroh confronted him about it and told him to give up the destiny given to him by his father. Zuko, although extremely conflicted, releases Appa and returns home with his uncle. His conflict over the situation ended in him getting very sick, and suffering a number of nightmares and hallucinations about the decisions he had to make, and ultimately, he seemed to have made the right choice. He became more optimistic about life in Ba Sing Se with his uncle, and it finally looked like he'd really been able to turn himself around and on to the right path.
Things came crashing down not long afterward. Azula - who was working on invading Ba Sing Se - set up a trap for him and Iroh, and Zuko was imprisoned in a cave with Katara, who had also been captured. The two not quite bonded over how the Fire Nation had taken away both their mothers, and Katara offered to try healing his scar, but the two were interrupted by the timely arrival of Aang and Iroh. Although Zuko seemed to have turned around, the temptation to capture the Avatar was still strong, and with Azula and Iroh both trying to convince him to do what they thought was best, the temptation to finally return home with his honor was too great, and Zuko fell in with Azula to try and capture Aang, much to the dismay of Iroh. Although Azula was able to hit Aang with a deadly lightning strike, Katara was able to escape with the Airbender and heal him entirely with the help of Iroh, who was then imprisoned by Dai Li soldiers and taken back to the Fire Nation with Zuko and Azula. Immediately as Iroh was captured, Zuko began to question if he'd done the right thing or not, and even with his sister's assurance that he had, he was still conflicted.
The two returned home, and in a move that both boosted Zuko's favor with their father and protected Azula if it turned out Aang had somehow survived, she gave him the credit for killing the Avatar. Zuko was welcomed back by their father and hailed as a hero.
Although Zuko initially assumed this would be the end of his inner conflict - as he had exactly what he'd always wanted after all this time - he found himself even more tormented and frustrated with himself. He regretted betraying Iroh, and tried explaining himself to his uncle, visiting him in prison often, but the former general refused to talk to him. To try and cover his bases, he hired an assassin to kill the Avatar, as Zuko knew he was still alive, and he struggled to reconcile his new-but-old life with everything he'd been through and learned. While on Ember Island with Azula and her two closest friends (one of whom Zuko was dating), he came to the realization that he was angry with himself because he doesn't know the difference between right and wrong anymore.
Iroh cryptically left him an anonymous note telling him to investigate his family history, and through reading and talking to his uncle, Zuko discovered that through his mother's side, he's related to the last Avatar, a Firebender called Roku. As such, he was in a good place to be the one to restore honor and peace to the Fire Nation, or continue to destroy it like his other grandfather, the Fire Lord who started the war.
Finally, before the day of the solar eclipse when Aang and his assorted mini army were planning on attacking, Zuko was invited to a war meeting with his father. This was everything he ever wanted, but he realized he wasn't himself while participating in the war meeting. He couldn't ever be the son his father wanted him to be, and finally, he realized what he had to do.
After sort of tying up loose ends, Zuko confronted his father during the eclipse, and told him not only is the Avatar still alive, but Azula lied and said Zuko was the one who killed him. He explains how conflicted he's been, and says that Ozai is a cruel leader and father, and he knows now that he's supposed to help the Avatar defeat him. Just as he was about to leave, Ozai tempted him to stay with information about his mother, trying to run out time to the end of the eclipse so he could kill Zuko once and for all. After explaining that Ursa had committed treasonous deeds that put Ozai on the throne to protect Zuko from being killed - something that Ozai was apparently very willing to do - Zuko has hope that she was still alive. Ozai admits that it's possible and he doesn't know, and just as the eclipse ends, fires a bolt of lightning at Zuko. He was able to catch it and redirect it, much to his father's surprise, and Zuko bought himself time to escape. He headed to the prison where Iroh was kept to free him, only to find that Iroh had already escaped. He then headed to catch up with Aang and his friends, who were retreating from the battle, which did not go exactly as planned.
He agonized over how exactly to present himself to Aang and his friends, considering they'd been enemies for so long, and he really wanted to help teach Aang Firebending. He finally approached the group, only to be poorly received because of the group's history with him. This only got worse when he accidentally burned Toph, who was the one group member willing to give him a second chance, but after he helped stop the assassin he'd hired to kill Aang - called "Combustion Man" by Sokka - he was accepted as Aang's new Firebending teacher. The group was still a little frosty towards him, especially Katara, but eventually warmed up to him and began to see him as really a part of the group. When he realized his Firebending had been dampened because he'd lost the rage and drive that had powered him through most of his life, he and Aang traveled to the ruins of the ancient Sun Warrior civilization, where Firebending originated. There, after being tested by the Sun Warriors - who were alive but in hiding - he and Aang discovered there were still two living dragons left, and proved themselves to be worthy of practicing Firebending. Zuko discovered that Firebending isn't just hate and destruction, but beauty and creation as well, and because he'd never really known that before, once his hate and obsession to capture the Avatar was gone, he'd lost his ability. His new drive was to help Aang defeat his father and restore peace to the Fire Nation and the world, and he was able to Firebend again.
He would also help Sokka free prisoners from a Fire Nation prison called the Boiling Rock, and helped Katara hunt down the man who murdered her mother. All three "trips with Zuko" helped him really become part of the team, working alongside them and building friendships rather than just being Aang's teacher. He helped buy the group time to escape when an increasingly unstable Azula attacked the Western Air Temple, and eventually took them to Ember Island as a new hiding place closer to the Fire Nation's capital as Sozin's Comet approached.
As it got closer, Zuko became frustrated with Aang, trying to get him to focus on training and developing more quickly so he'd be ready to take on his father, but Aang still wanted to goof off with the other kids. Aang and the others explained that they'd been planning on going after Ozai after the comet, to buy Aang more time to master Firebending. Zuko revealed that this was not a good idea because Ozai was planning on using the power from the comet to burn down the Earth Kingdom and build a new nation from the ashes, and that they needed to fight Ozai now. He taught Aang how to redirect lightning, and the group prepared for the final battle.
However, Aang went missing. Zuko and the others searched everywhere, even hiring the help of a bounty hunter Zuko had employed when first chasing Aang, but they can't find him. At first the group is about to despair until Zuko suggests there might be another person who can defeat Ozai, and produces one of Iroh's sandals for the bounty hunter's Shirshu to track. June leads them to Ba Sing Se, and where they were greeted by members of the Order of the White Lotus, an ancient secret society that Iroh is the leader of. Zuko was afraid to approach him at first, expecting his uncle to hate him for what he'd done, but eventually - with reassurances from Katara - is convinced to approach him. He told him how sorry he was and begs for his forgiveness, only to be pulled into a hug by his uncle, who had never been angry with him, only sad that he'd lost his way. Zuko was shocked by how easily he was forgiven, and Iroh told him how proud he is of him.
The next morning, Zuko tried to convince Iroh to take on Ozai, but he refused, because even if he could defeat Ozai, history would just see it as more senseless violence. It needed to be the Avatar. Zuko then asked if Iroh planned on taking the throne after Ozai was defeated, but Iroh surprised him by saying that the Fire Nation needed someone younger, someone with unquestionable honor, and that person was Zuko himself. Zuko was surprised, and pointed out that he'd made so many mistakes in his life and that he didn't think he had unquestionable honor, Iroh told him that because he struggled and worked so hard to redeem himself, he's worthy, and that his honor has never been in question. He told him to return to the Fire Nation and fight Azula for the benefit of the nation, and Zuko agreed, taking Katara and Appa with him.
They arrived during Azula's coronation, and Azula immediately challenged him to an Agni Kai. Zuko accepted, and the two began to fight, despite Katara thinking there was something off about Azula, who was fighting a losing battle to hold on to her sanity. Zuko slowly began to gain the upper hand, but Azula sends a blast of lightning at Katara, and Zuko jumped to intercept it. While he was able to redirect most of it, he was badly injured, and Katara ended up tricking Azula and chaining her to a grate, before tending to Zuko's injuries.
Aang was successful in defeating Ozai, but instead of killing him, took away his ability to bend, and thus effectively taking away what made him a threat. After his fight with Azula, Zuko reconnected with Mai, and not long after was crowned Fire Lord. He addressed his people with a message that he would work with the Avatar to rebuild the world the Fire Nation had almost destroyed, and that they would restore honor to the Fire Nation, and redeem them from their atrocities committed during the war. He later visited his father in prison and demanded information about his mother.
Zuko still spends time with his friends from "Team Avatar", and spends time at Iroh's newly reopened tea shop in Ba Sing Se, and presumably kept good on his word of helping redeem the Fire Nation and rebuild the world. He is coming to the Barge not long after the series finale, on the condition that upon graduating an inmate, he'll receive information about his mother's whereabouts and hopefully the means to find her.
Sample Journal Entry:
[It's taken Zuko a few minutes to figure out what exactly he's supposed to do with the journal, since it's a little more advanced than anything they've got back home, and he wants to be sure he'd doing this right. First impressions, while not the be all and end all of interacting with others, are still important, and he wants to make a good one. Fumbling around with a communicator and admitting he doesn't really know how to use it isn't an option.
He's turned on the voice function and starts recording and may or may not have practiced and thought about what he was going to say before actually posting to the network. Maybe with impersonations of Iroh and Aang and Sokka to try and figure out how exactly to introduce himself.]
My name is Zuko. I've been taken on board this vessel as a warden, and I intend on doing my job and getting started as soon as possible. When are wardens and inmates assigned?
... And this is probably a long shot, but, uh, is anyone else from the Fire Nation? Or the Earth Kingdom?
Sample RP: There was no question about it. The play was shockingly accurate in some ways, but the Ember Island Players were the same people who had butchered "Love Amongst the Dragons" every summer, and decent special effects or not, the play was still terrible. What made it worse was the fact that all it did was rehash all the mistakes he'd made in the past, and sitting through the first two acts had been difficult. The pep talk from Toph had helped. The idea that maybe he'd already made his uncle proud by joining the Avatar and trying to help bring down his father and put an end to the war once and for all was... nice. He wasn't sure he really believed it, but the idea that Iroh would be proud of him was still nice. It gave him a little bit of hope that maybe, everything would be okay.
And then the third act happened.
He'd been the first one to leave the theater, and now he was leading the way back to the beach house, partially because he was the only one comfortable with the route, but also because he just wanted to get away from the theater as fast as possible. Seeing himself fail in the past was one thing, but seeing that everyone - or if he was being modest in his assumptions, the playwrights and most of the audience - expected him to fail in the future was another thing entirely.
The walk back to the beach house was quiet at first. No one really wanted to talk about what happened. Yeah, it was just a play - a bad one at that - but watching himself get murdered by his sister, and then Aang killed by Ozai had been more than a little horrifying. The fact was, Sozin's Comet was going to come, no matter what, and there was a decent shot they were all going to get killed, and seeing it played out on stage, even by a bad theater troupe made it... somehow more real. Everyone expected them to fail, and there was a good shot it was going to happen, even after everything they'd done. After all their work and struggling, it could all be for nothing.
But thinking like that wasn't going to help anyone. And neither was brooding about what they'd just seen. Of course, brooding was something he had a lot of experience with, while being positive and a team player wasn't, but as they continued down the rock steps towards the beach, he realized someone had to say something to break the silence. He'd expected it to be Sokka or Toph, but it seemed like the final scenes had sobered even Sokka, and Toph probably realized the last thing Aang wanted to talk about was what had happened. Which left it up to the others. Or, really, him. It didn't have to be anything big or important, but just something to make it less awkward, to get people talking again and less focused on what they're just seen.
After all, even if everyone expected them to fail, that didn't mean they couldn't or shouldn't try, and they needed to get back to working and whatever passed for normal amongst their ragtag group if they wanted any chance of defeating his father.
And really, it just had to be said.
"That... wasn't a good play."
Special Notes: HONORRRRRRRR.
And here is more voice testing.
User LJ: 1jobonthisship
AIM/IM: girlwonder004 @ AIM
E-mail: isthereair@gmail.com
Other Characters: batmanschmatman, inhistorybooks, knowsthepeople, result_of_war, becauseheswill
Character Name: Prince FIRE LORD Zuko
Series: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Age: Sixteenish. Definitely closer to seventeen if not actually seventeen at this point.
From When?: After the series finale.
Inmate/Warden: Warden. Although in the past Zuko's done some pretty bad stuff, he's done the whole redemption thing already, and by the end of the series, is an altruistic hero who wants to redeem his country and restore peace and happiness to his world after a 100 year war. He's made a deal with the Admiral for information about his missing (and previously presumed dead) mother.
Item: The crown prince headpiece.
Abilities/Powers: Zuko is a talented Firebender, and has been training with masters since he was very young. Although it took him longer to master the art then his sister, by the time the series starts, he's extremely talented, and grows even more so as the series progresses. Firebending at its simplest is the ability to create and control fire, although there are different styles and techniques, all of which are listed here. Zuko is capable of all the basic abilities, and most of the advanced techniques, most notably fire breathing, jet propulsion (while his abilities were enhanced by Sozin's Comet, it's unknown/assumed he's not capable of it normally) and fire augmentation. He's one of the only people in the series who can redirect lightning when hit with it, although he can't generate it himself. His Firebending abilities are dampened during times of solar eclipse or extreme cold (although cold can be overcome with focus), and if he loses his "inner fire" (drive), his powers will become weaker.
Zuko is also a skilled hand to hand combatant and swordsman. He's strong enough to kick through metal chains, capable of holding his own against basically any foe - generally only resorting to Firebending when faced with another powerful bender - can jump great distances, an excellent climber, and is fast enough to run on walls. He's mastered the use of his twin Dao blades, and while he isn't as talented as Azula at strategy and academics, he's very intelligent and skilled at planning, and is also skilled at stealth and infiltration. He knows how to track people - having chased down the Avatar and his friends successfully on a number of occasions - and in general, knows how to take care of himself. That said, he's still as vulnerable as any other human teenager, and can be hurt and killed just as easily as someone without awesome fire powers.
On the Barge, he won't resort to Firebending unless it's necessary and his opponent can defend themselves. Otherwise, he'll rely on other methods, as again, he's more than capable of defending himself without Firebending.
He also knows how to play the Tsungi Horn.
Personality: Perhaps more than anything else, Zuko always, always tries. No matter what it is, if he wants it, or wants it for someone else, he's going to give everything he has to get it, and get it the right way. He's not afraid to make mistakes or fail, so long as he knows he's trying to do the right thing, and accepts that this is just something he'll have to do in life: fail and try not to make the same mistake twice. He's always determined and persistent, and is generally incredibly reluctant to accept anything less than perfection. He has a lot of drive and ambition, and this can often be very single minded, focusing on one task or greater goal at the expense of basically anything else. This can be seen at first with his relentless hunting of the Avatar, and even in how focused he is on training Aang in firebending, and then presumably in restoring peace to the world as the new Fire Lord. Without something to work for or work on, he can feel lost and confused with himself and his place in the world, as exhibited during his time as an exile with his uncle in the Earth Kingdom, and later when he realized he made a mistake in betraying Iroh to side with Azula. As such, it's not surprising that Zuko is a very intense person, and generally takes things very seriously, often getting frustrated when people don't realize the gravity of a situation. He can be a little bossy, generally with with people he feels comfortable with, in charge of, or responsible for, while he's become more passive and cooperative with other people, and generally is less grouchy and angry about everything.
It's important to point out that Zuko is a very different person than he was at the beginning of the series. For most of his life, he's wanted one thing: the love and acceptance of his father, Fire Lord Ozai. In the past, he's been willing to do just about anything to achieve that, including betraying his uncle, Iroh, and relentlessly pursuing information about the Avatar (which was considered to basically be a fool's mission until Katara and Sokka found Aang in the iceberg), and eventually, the Avatar himself. He was so obsessed with redeeming himself in the eyes of his father, he was completely blinded to anything else, and as such, he functioned as the primary antagonist for the first of the three seasons of Avatar.
That said, he's always had moments of being genuinely a good person, and most of his actual villainy was inspired by desperately wanting his father's approval. He finally realized he could never be the son his father wanted after he actually had his apparently love and respect. After betraying his uncle, he expected to feel happy and fulfilled, but in fact felt horrible, and his anger with his situation shifted to himself. He's incredibly surprised when Iroh forgives him immediately, and in fact says there's nothing to forgive, because he hated himself so much for doing the wrong thing and betraying the one person who's always been there for him.
For a long time, Zuko thought it was his destiny to find the Avatar and bring him to the Fire Nation, but has grown to believe that people make their own destinies, and that to really figure out what your purpose in life is, you need to work hard and be prepared to make mistakes, and struggle. Because this is something he's personally discovered, and learned the hard way, since most of his life has been one futile seeming struggle after another, he does try to point this out to other people when they themselves are having a difficult time figuring out what their place in the universe is. Although he isn't as focused on the metaphysical as say, his uncle is, Zuko does suggest talking about things like "their place in the universe" when stuck with Aang in a potentially inescapable situation, and it's clearly an important thing for him to think about and consider.
He's very, very aware of all the mistakes he's made in the past, and won't try and deny it to anyone. While he isn't necessarily ashamed of his past - in that again, he's aware of and willing to admit to his mistakes, and there are a lot of them - he certainly isn't proud of what he's done, and is always ready and willing to make an effort to prove he isn't the same guy. Instead of being the proud, stubborn, "I'm better than everyone else" prince from the first season, Zuko has learned how to be humble and treat others with respect, and is willing to go above and beyond to prove to his new friends and teammates that he's not the same person. Their acceptance and approval is important to him, mostly because part of him doesn't really feel like he deserves it in some ways, but also because apart from Iroh, they're the first positive relationships he's had besides his mother. He really doesn't feel like he deserves them as friends, in some ways, and is often quick to point out to people that he isn't the lone good Fire Nation person. That's his uncle, and Zuko doesn't really feel he deserves to be classified as a glimmer of hope for the Fire Nation.
He's very preoccupied by honor and doing the right thing for the right reasons, especially because he was doing the wrong thing for maybe the right reasons for so long. Almost everything he's done has been in an attempt to restore or regain his honor, which he believed he'd lost first when his father banished him, and then again when he'd betrayed his uncle. However, he's come to learn that honor is something that must be earned, and apparently, he's been a person of unquestionable honor this whole time, which is actually very valid. Despite being an antagonist and then an anti-hero, Zuko has always tried to do what he feels is right, especially when it comes to the well being of others. Speaking up for the benefit of Fire Nation soldiers was, after all, why he ended up being burned, banished and sent on a "fool's errand" in the first place. He won't do something that will hurt innocent people if he can help it, and even while being a villain, he won't sacrifice the lives of his troops for the benefit of the Fire Nation's ultimate goal, and tries to save his enemy Admiral Zhao from being drowned by a vengeful ocean spirit. Although he used to hide behind a lot of armor to keep people at arm's length, he could show compassion to people close to him, and that's only become more and more apparent as he's matured and changed.
Although he is very clever, he does have a tendency to rush into situations without thinking things through clearly, something that his uncle often tries to get him to stop doing. By the end of the series, it's clear that it's something he's actively working on, even going as far as to point out to Sokka when the other teenager is about to rush into something that usually Zuko's the one doing that, while Sokka plans things through more carefully. He's a skilled strategist and problem solver, often figuring out ways to get past traps and who knows what else even when other members of his current group are ready to just throw in the towel.
While he can come off as being grumpy or uninterested in interacting positively with other people initially, Zuko actually can be just as friendly and social as any other teenager when put in the right situation, although really, he's not great at interacting with his peers. He's definitely improved, and his intentions are always good, but he can often come off as being a little awkward. In general, he's not great at interacting socially with others, but it's something he's actively working on. After teaming up with and being accepted by "Team Avatar", he makes jokes, tries to connect with the other team members and in general, makes an effort to really have friends. His sense of humor is a little dry and teasing (or inspired by stuff he sort of remembers from Iroh) but it's there, and while he might grumble and get frustrated by whatever awesome fun plans you have, he's actually easily talked into things, even if he thinks it's silly or a waste of time. He's also capable of praising other people when they deserve it and admitting he cares about people, which is a lot different from early in the series when he tries distancing himself from Iroh and just about everyone else in an attempt to appear tough and invulnerable. In general, he's more laid back and honestly much happier than he was earlier in the series, and is definitely a more honestly empathetic person.
Because of everything he's been through - and the fact that his culture does generally expect more from their teenagers and children than ours does - Zuko is very mature for his age, and is actually in charge of a country back home. As such, he can come off as being very serious when on the job. He was a strict Firebending teacher for Aang - leaving him homework while Zuko and Sokka went off to rescue Sokka's father, and presumably when he went to help Katara avenge her mother as well - and does take his responsibilities and duties very seriously. As such, when in work mode, he can come off as being more difficult to work with or for then when he's just relaxing with friends. And while he is a very mature teenager, he still has moments of being... a teenager. He can get petulant and stubborn, especially with his friends, and when people are trying to just laze on by without doing the work they need to actually get the job done. He can scootch around and get indignant when people aren't taking him seriously, and generally is capable of acting his age, even if it doesn't happen often.
Despite the fact that he is softening up and working on interacting more positively with other people, he still does have a temper, and can get frustrated when things aren't exactly going the way he'd hoped they would. His Firebending used to be drawn from his hate and anger, but it's something he's actively trying to move away from, and for the most part, has. He doesn't want to rely on being angry anymore, and is actively trying to not follow in the legacy of his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. Not repeating the mistakes of the past is probably one of his biggest motivations in the future, and in general, he is (and has been) very heavily influenced by the people in his life, especially his family. Although he used to be conflicted between listening to his sister and father, and then his uncle, now Azula and Ozai have become figures of what not to be, while Iroh continues to be an important voice and influence in his life, and Zuko occasionally spouts off Iroh-esque wisdom to people like Sokka, which doesn't always make a lot of sense. Most importantly, he's grown to realize figures like Ozai and Azula are an example of what not to do, and so while he might still be actively learning from their example, it's absolutely not as a positive influence he wants to emulate, either as Fire Lord or as a human being.
He's a good person to have on your side in a fight, both because he's an impressive combatant and someone who won't stab you in the back if you're on his side. He's good at adapting to new situations - especially if there's a specific goal in mind - and always tries to get in and get out with whatever is needed quickly, with as little casualties as possible. Although Avatar is a kid's show, and therefore Zuko hasn't ever been on screen really 100% stabbed-them-in-the-heart responsible for another person's death, he can be ruthless and does not share Aang's opinions about forgiving people who have really, really wronged you in the past being easy, which is sort of ironic considering his past history, and might have something to do with the fact that he hasn't really forgiven himself for what he's done. So, while he does care about human life, and doesn't actively encourage murder, he doesn't have a strict no kill policy either, and isn't afraid to do what it takes to defend the people he cares about and get the job done the right way. He even is in pretty direct opposition to Aang looking for an alternative way to defeat Ozai, because killing him would just end the problem once and for all, whereas the other options available at the time weren't exactly permanent.
He's likely to view being a warden as a huge responsibility and privilege, not right. He's been asked to be here by the Admiral for a reason, and he's here to do a job. As someone who's personally been through a fight for redemption, and struggled to make things right with the people he cares about and perfect strangers alike, he's likely to be extremely sympathetic to most inmates, but understand that redemption isn't just something that can be handed to them either. It's a long, difficult process, and because he honestly believes if you put in the work and effort to do the right thing, you can change your fate, he'll be a supportive and active warden.
Path to Redemption: lol dude he did this already.
History: This covers it pretty well.
Zuko was the oldest of two children born to Prince Ozai and his wife, Ursa. Zuko's younger sister Azula was a prodigy, both in Firebending and the general attitude expected by their father, while Zuko struggled to keep up with her. During their childhood, Azula would often manipulate and pick on her brother, a behavior which often went pretty unchecked in the household. He had a much more positive relationship with his mother, and with his uncle, Iroh, the former of which would become a matter of great resentment between him and Azula, who wanted the approval of her mother as well.
When Zuko was about ten, his cousin Lu Ten was killed in battle while his father - Zuko's uncle, Iroh - sieged the city of Ba Sing Se. Devastated by the death of his only son, Iroh abandoned the siege and returned home. While eavesdropping on his father and grandfather with Azula, Zuko overheard his father petitioning Fire Lord Azulon to make him heir instead of his older brother. Azulon was furious, and promised Ozai that while Iroh had suffered enough, his suffering had only begun. Azulon planned on forcing Ozai to kill Zuko, to show Ozai what his brother had been through, but Ursa intervened. It's never been revealed exactly what she did, but Azulon died that night and Ozai was declared firelord. Ursa - after saying a cryptic not quite goodbye to Zuko - was no where to be found and was assumed dead by her family.
When Zuko was thirteen, he convinced his uncle to let him attend a war meeting, on the condition that he wouldn't speak during the meeting. But when a general proposed a plan to sacrifice new troops for a diversion, Zuko spoke out in their defense, saying it was a betrayal to their loyalty to the Fire Nation. This was received as a grave insult, and Ozai demanded the teenager participate in an Agni Kai - a traditional duel. Expecting one of the generals to be his opponent, Zuko was shocked to see his father as his opponent instead and refused to fight, begging for his forgiveness. Ozai interpreted this as another sign of weakness and disrespect, and burned the left side of Zuko's face, stripped him of his birthright and exiled him from the Fire Nation, telling him he could only return if he found the Avatar, which at the time, was basically a fool's mission, as the Avatar had been missing for over a hundred years. He was accompanied by his uncle, Iroh along with a small ship and crew. He spent the next two and a half years of his life looking for the Avatar, traveling all over the world in search of the one thing that he thought could restore his honor and bring him home again.
The Avatar - this cycle, an Air Nomad named Aang - was discovered by two Water Tribe kids, Katara and Sokka. Zuko was quickly on their tail, and would spend the next several weeks chasing them around the various villages and islands on their way to the North Pole, where Aang and Katara hoped to learn Waterbending from a master. Also looking for the Avatar was the then Commander Zhao, a member of the Fire Nation military, and Zuko's main rival in capturing the Avatar. Zuko defeated him in an Agni Kai, and continued his search for the Avatar. When Aang was captured by Zhao, Zuko infiltrated the camp to free him in his Blue Spirit disguise, and after being knocked unconscious during their escape, Aang realized who his rescuer is. Still, he took Zuko to safety, and even attempts bonding with the banished prince, who promptly lashed out and Aang fled back to Katara and Sokka.
Zhao would later try to assassinate Zuko, while trying to organize and initiate an attack against the Northern Water Tribe. After stowing away on Zhao's ship, he was able to once again get close to Aang, and although he was initially defeated by Katara, was able to break free of the ice prison she put him in and kidnap Aang. Although Katara and others would eventually beat Zuko again, Aang insisted they take him along with them instead of leaving him unconscious in the snow, saving his life for a second time. While the others were distracted, he escaped and encountered Zhao again, once again defeated him, and tried to save him from being drowned by the angry ocean spirit, La.
He and Iroh escaped the North Pole on driftwood, and on the three year anniversary of Zuko's banishment, Azula showed up with news that Ozai wanted his son and brother home again. This was all a trick to try and get the two to go along willingly with the princess, when in actuality, they were to be prisoners. Iroh and Zuko were able to escape, and began their lives as fugitives from the Fire Nation. As neither was exactly skilled at surviving on their own, things didn't go well and Zuko's pride and still borderline obsessive desire to capture the Avatar became an issue between the two, and Zuko eventually decided to part ways with his uncle.
While alone, he encountered and helped a Earth Nation family, but once he revealed his true identity, they rebuffed him, and he once again was alone. He picked up the trail of Azula's tank, as the princess tracked Aang and his friends, and Zuko followed to a deserted town, and quickly a fight broke out between the Fire Nation prince and princess and the Avatar. Azula dominated the fight, but the odds were evened out when the others - including Iroh - showed up, until Azula feigned surrender and then seriously injured Iroh. Zuko forced the other kids away and tended to his injuries himself. After he healed, they resumed Zuko's Firebending training, and began introducing him to creating and redirecting lightning. While Zuko never was able to create his own lightning in the show, he becomes one of the only characters who can redirect it, a skill which would save his life on more than once occasion.
They finally settled down in Ba Sing Se, and Iroh ended up opening a tea shop. Zuko was frustrated by how easily his uncle was adapting to and adopting their new lifestyle, while Iroh was frustrated that his nephew couldn't see that hunting the Avatar down was self destructive and futile. This finally came to a head when Zuko found Aang's missing (and kidnapped) sky bison, Appa, intending to use him as bait for Aang. Iroh confronted him about it and told him to give up the destiny given to him by his father. Zuko, although extremely conflicted, releases Appa and returns home with his uncle. His conflict over the situation ended in him getting very sick, and suffering a number of nightmares and hallucinations about the decisions he had to make, and ultimately, he seemed to have made the right choice. He became more optimistic about life in Ba Sing Se with his uncle, and it finally looked like he'd really been able to turn himself around and on to the right path.
Things came crashing down not long afterward. Azula - who was working on invading Ba Sing Se - set up a trap for him and Iroh, and Zuko was imprisoned in a cave with Katara, who had also been captured. The two not quite bonded over how the Fire Nation had taken away both their mothers, and Katara offered to try healing his scar, but the two were interrupted by the timely arrival of Aang and Iroh. Although Zuko seemed to have turned around, the temptation to capture the Avatar was still strong, and with Azula and Iroh both trying to convince him to do what they thought was best, the temptation to finally return home with his honor was too great, and Zuko fell in with Azula to try and capture Aang, much to the dismay of Iroh. Although Azula was able to hit Aang with a deadly lightning strike, Katara was able to escape with the Airbender and heal him entirely with the help of Iroh, who was then imprisoned by Dai Li soldiers and taken back to the Fire Nation with Zuko and Azula. Immediately as Iroh was captured, Zuko began to question if he'd done the right thing or not, and even with his sister's assurance that he had, he was still conflicted.
The two returned home, and in a move that both boosted Zuko's favor with their father and protected Azula if it turned out Aang had somehow survived, she gave him the credit for killing the Avatar. Zuko was welcomed back by their father and hailed as a hero.
Although Zuko initially assumed this would be the end of his inner conflict - as he had exactly what he'd always wanted after all this time - he found himself even more tormented and frustrated with himself. He regretted betraying Iroh, and tried explaining himself to his uncle, visiting him in prison often, but the former general refused to talk to him. To try and cover his bases, he hired an assassin to kill the Avatar, as Zuko knew he was still alive, and he struggled to reconcile his new-but-old life with everything he'd been through and learned. While on Ember Island with Azula and her two closest friends (one of whom Zuko was dating), he came to the realization that he was angry with himself because he doesn't know the difference between right and wrong anymore.
Iroh cryptically left him an anonymous note telling him to investigate his family history, and through reading and talking to his uncle, Zuko discovered that through his mother's side, he's related to the last Avatar, a Firebender called Roku. As such, he was in a good place to be the one to restore honor and peace to the Fire Nation, or continue to destroy it like his other grandfather, the Fire Lord who started the war.
Finally, before the day of the solar eclipse when Aang and his assorted mini army were planning on attacking, Zuko was invited to a war meeting with his father. This was everything he ever wanted, but he realized he wasn't himself while participating in the war meeting. He couldn't ever be the son his father wanted him to be, and finally, he realized what he had to do.
After sort of tying up loose ends, Zuko confronted his father during the eclipse, and told him not only is the Avatar still alive, but Azula lied and said Zuko was the one who killed him. He explains how conflicted he's been, and says that Ozai is a cruel leader and father, and he knows now that he's supposed to help the Avatar defeat him. Just as he was about to leave, Ozai tempted him to stay with information about his mother, trying to run out time to the end of the eclipse so he could kill Zuko once and for all. After explaining that Ursa had committed treasonous deeds that put Ozai on the throne to protect Zuko from being killed - something that Ozai was apparently very willing to do - Zuko has hope that she was still alive. Ozai admits that it's possible and he doesn't know, and just as the eclipse ends, fires a bolt of lightning at Zuko. He was able to catch it and redirect it, much to his father's surprise, and Zuko bought himself time to escape. He headed to the prison where Iroh was kept to free him, only to find that Iroh had already escaped. He then headed to catch up with Aang and his friends, who were retreating from the battle, which did not go exactly as planned.
He agonized over how exactly to present himself to Aang and his friends, considering they'd been enemies for so long, and he really wanted to help teach Aang Firebending. He finally approached the group, only to be poorly received because of the group's history with him. This only got worse when he accidentally burned Toph, who was the one group member willing to give him a second chance, but after he helped stop the assassin he'd hired to kill Aang - called "Combustion Man" by Sokka - he was accepted as Aang's new Firebending teacher. The group was still a little frosty towards him, especially Katara, but eventually warmed up to him and began to see him as really a part of the group. When he realized his Firebending had been dampened because he'd lost the rage and drive that had powered him through most of his life, he and Aang traveled to the ruins of the ancient Sun Warrior civilization, where Firebending originated. There, after being tested by the Sun Warriors - who were alive but in hiding - he and Aang discovered there were still two living dragons left, and proved themselves to be worthy of practicing Firebending. Zuko discovered that Firebending isn't just hate and destruction, but beauty and creation as well, and because he'd never really known that before, once his hate and obsession to capture the Avatar was gone, he'd lost his ability. His new drive was to help Aang defeat his father and restore peace to the Fire Nation and the world, and he was able to Firebend again.
He would also help Sokka free prisoners from a Fire Nation prison called the Boiling Rock, and helped Katara hunt down the man who murdered her mother. All three "trips with Zuko" helped him really become part of the team, working alongside them and building friendships rather than just being Aang's teacher. He helped buy the group time to escape when an increasingly unstable Azula attacked the Western Air Temple, and eventually took them to Ember Island as a new hiding place closer to the Fire Nation's capital as Sozin's Comet approached.
As it got closer, Zuko became frustrated with Aang, trying to get him to focus on training and developing more quickly so he'd be ready to take on his father, but Aang still wanted to goof off with the other kids. Aang and the others explained that they'd been planning on going after Ozai after the comet, to buy Aang more time to master Firebending. Zuko revealed that this was not a good idea because Ozai was planning on using the power from the comet to burn down the Earth Kingdom and build a new nation from the ashes, and that they needed to fight Ozai now. He taught Aang how to redirect lightning, and the group prepared for the final battle.
However, Aang went missing. Zuko and the others searched everywhere, even hiring the help of a bounty hunter Zuko had employed when first chasing Aang, but they can't find him. At first the group is about to despair until Zuko suggests there might be another person who can defeat Ozai, and produces one of Iroh's sandals for the bounty hunter's Shirshu to track. June leads them to Ba Sing Se, and where they were greeted by members of the Order of the White Lotus, an ancient secret society that Iroh is the leader of. Zuko was afraid to approach him at first, expecting his uncle to hate him for what he'd done, but eventually - with reassurances from Katara - is convinced to approach him. He told him how sorry he was and begs for his forgiveness, only to be pulled into a hug by his uncle, who had never been angry with him, only sad that he'd lost his way. Zuko was shocked by how easily he was forgiven, and Iroh told him how proud he is of him.
The next morning, Zuko tried to convince Iroh to take on Ozai, but he refused, because even if he could defeat Ozai, history would just see it as more senseless violence. It needed to be the Avatar. Zuko then asked if Iroh planned on taking the throne after Ozai was defeated, but Iroh surprised him by saying that the Fire Nation needed someone younger, someone with unquestionable honor, and that person was Zuko himself. Zuko was surprised, and pointed out that he'd made so many mistakes in his life and that he didn't think he had unquestionable honor, Iroh told him that because he struggled and worked so hard to redeem himself, he's worthy, and that his honor has never been in question. He told him to return to the Fire Nation and fight Azula for the benefit of the nation, and Zuko agreed, taking Katara and Appa with him.
They arrived during Azula's coronation, and Azula immediately challenged him to an Agni Kai. Zuko accepted, and the two began to fight, despite Katara thinking there was something off about Azula, who was fighting a losing battle to hold on to her sanity. Zuko slowly began to gain the upper hand, but Azula sends a blast of lightning at Katara, and Zuko jumped to intercept it. While he was able to redirect most of it, he was badly injured, and Katara ended up tricking Azula and chaining her to a grate, before tending to Zuko's injuries.
Aang was successful in defeating Ozai, but instead of killing him, took away his ability to bend, and thus effectively taking away what made him a threat. After his fight with Azula, Zuko reconnected with Mai, and not long after was crowned Fire Lord. He addressed his people with a message that he would work with the Avatar to rebuild the world the Fire Nation had almost destroyed, and that they would restore honor to the Fire Nation, and redeem them from their atrocities committed during the war. He later visited his father in prison and demanded information about his mother.
Zuko still spends time with his friends from "Team Avatar", and spends time at Iroh's newly reopened tea shop in Ba Sing Se, and presumably kept good on his word of helping redeem the Fire Nation and rebuild the world. He is coming to the Barge not long after the series finale, on the condition that upon graduating an inmate, he'll receive information about his mother's whereabouts and hopefully the means to find her.
Sample Journal Entry:
[It's taken Zuko a few minutes to figure out what exactly he's supposed to do with the journal, since it's a little more advanced than anything they've got back home, and he wants to be sure he'd doing this right. First impressions, while not the be all and end all of interacting with others, are still important, and he wants to make a good one. Fumbling around with a communicator and admitting he doesn't really know how to use it isn't an option.
He's turned on the voice function and starts recording and may or may not have practiced and thought about what he was going to say before actually posting to the network. Maybe with impersonations of Iroh and Aang and Sokka to try and figure out how exactly to introduce himself.]
My name is Zuko. I've been taken on board this vessel as a warden, and I intend on doing my job and getting started as soon as possible. When are wardens and inmates assigned?
... And this is probably a long shot, but, uh, is anyone else from the Fire Nation? Or the Earth Kingdom?
Sample RP: There was no question about it. The play was shockingly accurate in some ways, but the Ember Island Players were the same people who had butchered "Love Amongst the Dragons" every summer, and decent special effects or not, the play was still terrible. What made it worse was the fact that all it did was rehash all the mistakes he'd made in the past, and sitting through the first two acts had been difficult. The pep talk from Toph had helped. The idea that maybe he'd already made his uncle proud by joining the Avatar and trying to help bring down his father and put an end to the war once and for all was... nice. He wasn't sure he really believed it, but the idea that Iroh would be proud of him was still nice. It gave him a little bit of hope that maybe, everything would be okay.
And then the third act happened.
He'd been the first one to leave the theater, and now he was leading the way back to the beach house, partially because he was the only one comfortable with the route, but also because he just wanted to get away from the theater as fast as possible. Seeing himself fail in the past was one thing, but seeing that everyone - or if he was being modest in his assumptions, the playwrights and most of the audience - expected him to fail in the future was another thing entirely.
The walk back to the beach house was quiet at first. No one really wanted to talk about what happened. Yeah, it was just a play - a bad one at that - but watching himself get murdered by his sister, and then Aang killed by Ozai had been more than a little horrifying. The fact was, Sozin's Comet was going to come, no matter what, and there was a decent shot they were all going to get killed, and seeing it played out on stage, even by a bad theater troupe made it... somehow more real. Everyone expected them to fail, and there was a good shot it was going to happen, even after everything they'd done. After all their work and struggling, it could all be for nothing.
But thinking like that wasn't going to help anyone. And neither was brooding about what they'd just seen. Of course, brooding was something he had a lot of experience with, while being positive and a team player wasn't, but as they continued down the rock steps towards the beach, he realized someone had to say something to break the silence. He'd expected it to be Sokka or Toph, but it seemed like the final scenes had sobered even Sokka, and Toph probably realized the last thing Aang wanted to talk about was what had happened. Which left it up to the others. Or, really, him. It didn't have to be anything big or important, but just something to make it less awkward, to get people talking again and less focused on what they're just seen.
After all, even if everyone expected them to fail, that didn't mean they couldn't or shouldn't try, and they needed to get back to working and whatever passed for normal amongst their ragtag group if they wanted any chance of defeating his father.
And really, it just had to be said.
"That... wasn't a good play."
Special Notes: HONORRRRRRRR.
And here is more voice testing.